Will Run for Coach

No, not a running coach... I mean a pink and purple plaid Coach bag. My husband told me he would buy me the bag I have been eyeing if I could beat my previous 5K time today at the Caroler 5K. I had a really bad run on Wednesday night and a really good run on Thursday night so I knew this could go either way. I was feeling decent and on top of that I was running with a friend who got into running about the same time I did. She is a bit faster than I am, but since she has been under the weather, she wasn't trying to beat her best time and decided to run with me. I was worried about this race because it was the first year they have done it and I am always worried about being last. But I decided that if my friend was with me then neither of us would be last! So we started out wayyyyy faster than I am used to. We came in at the 1 mile mark under 10 minutes, which I have never been able to do for even a quarter of a mile, let alone a whole one. The 2nd mile was tough- there was a big uphill portion. People in front of us were slowing down and even stopping, and it took all I had to zoom past them- if I didn't keep going, I wasn't going to make it! Anyway I also kept myself going with the thought that "what goes up must come down", so I knew I could make up time later on. We finished mile 2 huffing and puffing, an 11 minute per mile pace. This was 20 seconds slower than I was hoping for and I saw the bag slipping through my fingers. But, like I said, "what goes up must come down" and sure enough, it was time to make up for lost time. We flew down that hill at mile 3 and continued on pretty flat the rest of the way. I was feeling way better now and was able to pick up the pace. We finished the 3rd mile just over a 10 minute per mile pace, for an average pace of 10:28 and a total time of 31:44. Not only is this my fastest race, but it was faster by a minute and 46 seconds! I realize in comparison to the rest of humanity, I am still slow. But, since August, I have taken over 3 min per mile off of my pace and finished about 12 minutes faster than the first one I did this summer. I no longer feel embarrassed about my times and I think I can stop worrying about coming in last. I feel pretty decent, and certainly my new purse is helping  with that! I am feeling pretty good about my half marathon training at this point, and with a 6 mile run planned for tomorrow, positive thoughts and feelings are important! Thanks to my husband for offering great incentive to keep going, and thanks to Tina for not letting me stop. And thanks to Pat because he was there too, and he won a medal in his age group.